17th May 2017 Transition & Induction – New Year 7 We will soon be welcoming our new year 7s - all 180 of them! Indeed our ‘continued interest’ list continues to remain strong with over 35 families still wanting a place at Simon Balle. This year we have changed our transition & induction process. Whilst parents and students have enjoyed the time spent before arriving , we have been informed that too many information evenings were placed in early September. This has given us the opportunity to look at the process and therefore this year we are doing something different, with greater emphasis. Parental Transition Firstly, all students in Y6 are currently being visited in their primary school and year 6 teachers are meeting with us to provide important information about the year 6 students leaving. In addition, either a member of staff or one of the Y12 leadership team will talk with the students to find out more about them and answer any concern or questions. On Wednesday 12th July (the night before the transition day) we will run an extended session for parents only to explain not only systems but also the changes in terms of assessment within secondary school education. The 13th July is our usual induction day for students. Miss Robinson will be the new Head of Yr7.
Uniform May I remind parents once again of our uniform rules with special mention to year 9 parents as they will need to purchase new maroon jumpers for their children going in to Y10 Our most common concerns are; Kilts shouldn’t be rolled up at the waistband and should be just above the knee and not shorter. Jumpers and cardigans should not be tucked into the kilt. Earrings – one single pair of studs No rings or necklaces. Rings have become very popular this term Shoes must be black leather and no boots Makeup – must be discrete if worn at all. Currently there are some students wearing a strongly coloured foundation, too much eye makeup, nail varnish, acrylic nails and lipstick. All students wearing makeup are asked to wipe it off once seen. There is absolutely no need for this to be worn in school and is not good for teenage skin. Haircuts Should be natural coloured and not a fashion style – so no shaved heads, shaved sides, dreadlocks, braiding, coloured strands etc. All schools have a uniform code and ours is fairly simple. Please keep to it. Parents do also have a responsibility in checking and ensuring uniform is correct as much as we do! Students will receive sanctions if the uniform code is not adhered to.
Staff Information I am delighted to be able to announce the following promotions; James Pooley – Assistant Headteacher Lucy Owen (English) – Head of Year 10 (from June) Elsie Nwahba (MFL) – Head of Department (from September) We are currently advertising for teaching assistants to work in all key stages. Please take a look at our vacancies on our website. If you or anyone you know is interested in working in our science department or teach science (part time or full time) please can you contact our school manager: Madeleine Harman (harmanm@simonballe.herts.sch.uk) Public Exams Can all parents please note – due to the timings of the public examinations we will need to alter our daily timetable. Whilst the beginning and end of the school day will remain the same, the lesson and lunch structure do change. This is particularly relevant if students have medical appointments. From Monday 15th May – Friday 23rd June Lesson 1 (8:45-9:45) Lesson 2 (9:45-10:45) Break (10:45-11:05) Lesson 3 (11:05-12:05) Tutor Time (12:05-12:30) Lunch (12:30-1.25) Lesson 4 (1:25-2:25) Lesson 6 (2:25-3.25)
Families of Students in Years 11 and 13 Do keep us posted during the exams of any concerns or changes to your family circumstances. Remember that for us, normal school goes on and we are very much here for the y11 and y13 students. I have written to all parents in year 13 to thank them for their wonderful support over the past 7 years. For many, this is the last child to be part of the Simon Balle community and their association and commitment to the school has spanned over many many years. I have not yet written to the Y11 parents on mass as many of the students (usually 70%) do stay on for the sixth form.) In the past, parents who are ‘leaving’ our community have approached me about donations and small gifts. This year we are suggesting a purchase of a book that we have issued on an Amazon Wish list. If any Y11 parents are interested in this please contact Janet Syme, our school librarian symej@simonballe.herts.sch.uk. Thank you Staff Training Parents may be interested to learn about our most recent whole school training event which took place on the 3rd May. Our annual safeguarding training for all staff started with a focus on child protection, led by our Designated Safeguarding Lead Leon Brown. Staff were then allocated to various workshops that included anti terrorism, safer recruitment, health and safety, governance, values and e-safety. Further Training For those in education we are currently holding an SSAT (the school, students and teachers network) licence and running middle leadership courses. If you are interested in joining us next year on our programme, do contact Alison Saunders. Emily Robinson (maths) will be joining the National Leadership Programme and this week Simon Balle school has been invited to our annual celebration for those schools who had outstanding GCSE results in 2016.
Save the Date Saffron Hall– Saturday 15th July Our musical events go from strength to strength and it is always a joy to receive emails from parents, grandparents and others praising the young people for their amazing performances. Of course none of this happens by chance – we have an incredible group of staff who make this happen, day in day out. Those who come who are not linked directly to the students are amazed at what a comprehensive school can put on and perhaps more importantly keep on getting better with the amazing range of pieces and events . This is why I know we have the best music department in Hertfordshire and are in the top group nationally. This however continues to present new problems to solve. One of them is simply space! You may not be aware that Hertfordshire has very few venues that are large – the only “big” one being Watford Coliseum. Therefore this year our sights have been moved further afield. In order to be able to have an audience of over 500 plus performers, we will be moving to the Saffron Hall in Saffron Walden on Saturday 15th July. The Saffron Hall is an awarding winning 740 seat performance space within the grounds of Saffron Walden County High School. Since opening in November 2013 artists including The London Philharmonic Orchestra, Penguin Café, The Sixteen, Courtney Pine and Nicola Benedetti have played there. Saffron Hall is the result of what is believed to be the largest private donation to a British state school: a gift of over £10million from an anonymous local donor with a passion for music. For those of you who know Mark Taylor, our director of music, can guess what his latest mission is! So if any of you know of any philanthropic donors or how we can access grants, do let him know!
Save the Date - Slice of Summer Also on Saturday 15th July, but earlier in the day, is our annual summer fair – “Slice of Summer” which will take place in the Larch Centre. The Christmas “Frost Fair” raised a remarkable sum of over £3000 for school funds so we are eager to repeat this again to continue to improve our outdoor areas. More information about both events will be issued shortly.
Dates for your diary 29thMay -2nd June – Half term 30th June – Year 11 Awards Evening 3rd July – School Closed (INSET day) 5th July – Sports Presentation Evening 12th July – Transition Evening (Y6 Parents) 13th July Awards Evening 15th July – Concert, Summer Fete 21st July – End of term 4th September – School starts for all.
Fish and Chips—Friday 26th May Fish & Chip lovers across the UK are coming together again to celebrate the nation's favourite dish on Friday, 2nd June 2017. We will be on half term that day but have decided to celebrate the day a week early. The canteen will be serving fish and chips in the traditional way, with all the trimmings on Friday 26th May (£2.40) this will be followed by ice-cream wafers. There will also be a fish and chip quiz for students with prizes. Do encourage your child to join in this lunchtime feast!
‘The Complete History of the World (Abridged)’ Just before Easter we performed ‘The Complete History of the World (Abridged)’. This was the culmination of a term’s intensive rehearsals and had a cast of nearly 50 students! The cast were from years 7 to 10 and we also had several members of staff making cameo appearances. The whole thing was informative and fun. Every single member of the cast (students and staff) were brilliant. They worked hard and performed with enthusiasm. A big thank you to all the members of staff who made props, costumes and set and thus made it all possible. Well done everyone! Sarah Cornell
Exams Results Dates
THURSDAY 17th AUGUST—8.30am A2 Results THURSDAY 17th AUGUST—9.30am AS Results If any students have questions or concerns regarding University or Year 13 places, please contact sixthform@simonballe.herts.sch.uk 6th form staff will also be in school on Friday 18th August until 1pm.
THURSDAY 24th AUGUST—9.30am GCSE Results—Year 11 All students need to confirm their A Level choices as soon as they receive their results. If you are not available to collect your results, please contact the school on sixthform@simonballe.herts.sch.uk
THURSDAY 24th AUGUST 10.30am to 11.30am—GCSE Results—Year 10 NB it is not compulsory for Year 10 to collect results. There will not be a member of staff in school to discuss/explain year 10 results on this day—results will be available when you return to school in September.
Old £5 Notes You may be aware that the old style paper £5 bank notes are ceasing to be legal tender from midnight on Friday, 5th May 2017. So from Monday 8th May we will no longer be able to accept the old £5 note for any cash payments in the school, you can still exchange your old notes at your bank but many shops will be refusing the old notes from Saturday 6th May. We urge you to ensure that any payments made into the finance office or canteen are made with the new polymer notes!